It was launched in March 2012 by Grupo Folha, owner of the largest and most influential Brazilian newspaper, Folha de S.Paulo, the internet portal Universo Online (UOL) and the publishing house Publifolha. The name Três Estrelas takes inspiration from the three stars that are part of the logo of Folha, which represent the merger between three other newspapers under a single daily (Folha da Manhã, Folha da Tarde and Folha da Noite).

In its seven years Três Estrelas has published 90 titles, half of them by national authors. Some of the Brazilian authors included in Três Estrelas' catalogue are the controversial journalist Paulo Francis and the poet and chronicler Carlos Drummond de Andrade, while the list of foreign authors include renowned names such as Vladimir Nabokov, Annie Ernaux, Isaiah Berlin, and Lucien Febvre among others.

Três Estrelas books are intended for both the general public and specialists. Its guiding criteria is to widen the readers' cultural horizons with works that both enrich and entertain their lives.